The town proved to be built on low ground in a bay the other side the castle and the hill. It must be remembered that I had never travelled. The cane houses or huts, with their high peaked roofs thatched with palm leaves, the straight palms in the background against the sky, the morasses all about, the squawk and flop of strange, long-legged marsh birds, the glare of light, the queer looking craft beached on the mud, and the dark-skinned, white-clad figures awaiting us--all these struck strongly at my imagination.
We beached in the mud, and were at once surrounded by a host of little, brown, clamorous men. Talbot took charge, and began to shoot back Spanish at a great rate. Some of the little men had a few words of English. Our goods were seized, and promptly disappeared in a dozen directions. I tried to prevent this, but could only collar one man at a time. All the Americans were swearing and threatening at a great rate. I saw Johnny, tearing up the beach after a fleet native, fall flat and full length in the mud, to the vast delight of all who beheld.
"It's all settled," said he. "I've made a bargain with my friend here to take us up in his boat to Cruces for fifteen dollars apiece for four of us."
"Well, if you need two more, for heaven's sake rescue Johnny," I advised. "He'll have apoplexy."
We hailed Johnny and explained matters. Johnny was somewhat put to it to attain his desired air of imperturbable calm.
"They've got every blistered thing I own, and made off with it!" he cried. "Confound it, sir, I'm going to shoot every saddle-coloured hound in the place if I don't get back my belongings!"
"Well, keep calm," advised Talbot. "I don't know the game down here, but it strikes me they can't get very far through these swamps, if they _do_ try to steal, and I don't believe they're stealing anyway; the whole performance to me bears a strong family resemblance to hotel runners. Here, _compadre_!"
He talked a few moments with his boatman.
"That's right," he told us, then. "Come on!"
We walked along the little crescent of beach, looking into each of the boats in the long row drawn up on the shore. They were queer craft, dug out from the trunks of trees, with small decks in bow and stern, and with a low roof of palmetto leaves amidships. By the time we had reached the end of the row we had collected all our effects. Our own boatman stowed them in his craft.